Roxie
by TwilightFairy928
Summary: Axel's daughter Roxie can be a handful. When she's 4, she runs off when Xigbar is supposed to babysit, when she's 12, she loses her memory, and she keeps running away to help Sora. This is her story...
1. The Red Headed Infant

**Chapter 1**

**The Red-Headed Infant**

Axel rocked the little bundle back and forth in his arms. He looked at the little girl's face. When she was awake, he could see her beautiful, narrowed, bright green eyes. He reached toward her head, and ran his hand through her red hair, which was just as red as his. The infant opened her eyes, which were shaped like his, except wider. She extended her tiny arm from under the white blanket she was in, and grabbed his hand. "Hey," he said softly, and touched the tip of her nose with a free finger. She blinked, startled at first, then giggled. He, too, laughed. "I should take you inside soon," he said, "It's getting late, and mommy's gonna get mad at me if I let you stay up too late!" The little girl just continued to stare up at him.

Axel had run away from the Organization a few years ago, four years, to be exact, with Xemnas still in hot pursuit. The leader had sent nearly every Organization member after him, without success. Most recent was Saix, and before him was Xaldin, who had tried to cage him in his spears. Shortly after Axel evaded Xemnas, he reached the serene Twilight Town. There, he met a young woman by the name of Leah. She may not have been a nobody, but, over time, they grew closer and were eventually married. Later on, about two years later, Leah gave birth to their daughter, Roxie Roei(pronounced like Roy) Fireheart. They all had red hair, even Leah, though her eyes were blue instead of green.

And now, Axel stood outside their house near the clock tower in the Station Plaza. Their home was on Market Street: Station Heights. Here he stood, holding Roxie, rocking her to sleep, when a black mist appeared. Xemnas stepped out of it. "You have evaded the Organization long enough," he said. Axel grit his teeth and arched his back over Roxie, to protect her, like a mother lion(or, father lion, in this case). "I won't let you hurt Roxie, or Leah!" he shouted. "I simply came to bring you back," the gray-haired man said. "No..." Axel moaned. "You're coming back with me..." Xemnas said, then disappeared, then reappeared behind them. "NOW!" he commanded, and grabbed onto Axel's arms, dragging him and his daughter into the black portal. Axel cried out before they vanished.

Leah opened the door, alarmed. "Axel?! Are you alright?" she called and looked around. "Axel?"


	2. Axel's Return to the Organization

Chapter 2

Axel's Return to the Organization

Axel, Roxie and Xemnas reappeared in the home of the nobodies, The World That Never Was. Xemnas thrust Axel forward, snatching Roxie from him. "If this is what is keeping you from the Organization..." the Superior said, "then I should destroy it." "NO!" Axel shouted, "I'll do anything! Just... Please... Don't hurt her." He fell to his knees, lowered his head, and muttered, "And she's not an 'it'." "She is a nobody, Axel, because you are a nobody. She could not so much as exist, if you did not. She is a nobody of a girl by the name of Roei," Xemnas replied. "Look, Xemnas, sir," Axel began thoughtfully, not taking his eyes off the little bundle, "I'll take care of her! She is my daughter, after all, so... uh... um... I could keep her out of your way, too!" "If, then, you do keep her, you must obey all the commands I give, or..." Xemnas said, "I will turn you into a dusk," he pointed to the baby in his arms, "and I will destroy her." Axel sat on the floor in defeat. "Like I said... I'll do anything," he said sadly. With that, he was given Roxie back, and was sent to his old room. "What are we gonna do now?" he asked the little girl, "We can't go back, and mommy's gonna be so worried..."

Another black mist appeared, and this time it was Lexaeus, holding a large cradle. "The Superior sent me to give you this," he said, and added, "A meeting will take place in a few minutes. Demyx is to watch the baby." Axel nodded, as Lexaeus left. A few minutes later, Demyx arrived, overjoyed (if he actually had feelings) to see Roxie. Axel left for the meeting, thankful that Saix wasn't the one sent to babysit.

-By the way, I'm sorry that the chapters are so short! However, I think it's going to stay that way. But I plan for there to be lots of chapters, and I'm going to try to update soon!- TwilightFairy928


	3. Roxie's Little Escape

Chapter 3

Roxie's Little Escape

"No, Demyx, I don't want anyone to replace you in taking care of Roxie," Axel said, "And besides, you've benn taking care of her since I came back with Xemnas, and she's only four years old now."

"But, Axel, I'm supposed to go to this next meeting," Demyx protested, "So how about... um... Vexen?"

"NO!" Axel replied, his eyes widened, "He'll try and use her for an experiment, or something!"

"Oh, yeah, he might do that, yeah," Demyx said, thinking, "O.K., then, how about Lexaeus?"

"He'll scare her, with how big he is."

"Larxene? She's a girl, wouldn't she have that 'motherly instinct'?"

"Your kidding, right? She'd kill Roxie! Demyx, you have more of that 'motherly instinct' than Larxene does."

"Xaldin?"

"Oh, yeah, right. He'll make a playpen for her out of his spears. So, no"

"Saix?"

"NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! Got it memorized?! NO!"

"Alright, alright... How 'bout Zexion?"

"Zexy's only twelve, your eighteen. You even started looking after her at fourteen."

"I was only two years older... but anyway, what about Luxord?"

"Ha! He'd try to teach her how to gamble, so, no."

"Marluxia?"

"I don't know... I don't trust him."

"Last option: Xigbar?"

"Well, he's better than Marluxia... I guess."

"Alright! I'll go get him for you," Demyx said cheerfully.

"Demy? Your gonna go?" Roxie asked.

"Only for now! Don't worry, I'll come back!" he assured her.

"O.K.!" she replied happily. Demyx left, and returned a few minutes later.

"Xigbar will be here soon. I told Luxord to tell him," he said.

"Alright," Axel replied.

"Bye-bye, Roxie!" Demyx said.

"Bye-bye, Demy!" Roxe replied. He smiled at her, then vanished.

Time passed, but Xigbar had not come.

"I need toleave soon..." Axel said, "Roxie, do you think I could leave you by yourself, just for a little while, maybe ten, fifteen minutes?"

"Well... O.K., daddy," Roxie replied.

"If Xigbar doesn't come soon, I'll ask Xemnas if I can come back to check on you, and maybe bring Demyx. I'll see you later. Bye!" He set a wall of fire to keep her in. It wouldn't seriously injure her, since fire was her element, too, but it would sting her. It was just enough to provoke her from leaving. Axel then left.

Roxie waited a few minutes, on her bed. It had pink on the pillows,and on the sheets, as well as on the comforter. There was also flame designs, and single, large designs of the Organization's symbol on the pillows and comforter. It had been carried in a year ago by Lexaeus and Xaldin, when she had outgrown her cradle. But now, she decided that she had waited long enough for Xigbar. She came to the firewall and, sure enough, burnt her right hand. She cried out, and tried again. This time, she spread her arms out as wide she could, so that she, for the first time, controlled the fire, and separated it. She walked through the door to the Proof of Existence room. From there, she travelled down the castle. Once she was at Naught's Skyway, Demyx passed by.

"Hello, Demy!" Roxie said, "Watcha doin'?"

"I'm going to get my Sitar," he replied, surprised to see her.

"Oh. Have you seen my daddy?" she asked.

"He's in a meeting right now, but it's not in the usual place. Today, he's in the Hall of Empty Melodies."

"Thank-you, Demy!" she said, and continued on.

"Where's Xigbar? Uh-oh..." he thought.

When Roxie entered the room, she saw Axel, and ran to him, shouting, "daddy!" Axel turned around to see her, who hugged his legs.

"Roxie?" he said, confused, "Where's Xigbar?"

At that moment, Xigbar appeared.

"Hey, Axel..." he said, scratching his head, "So... where's Roxie?"

"She's right here," Axel replied, upset. Roxie noticed this, and smiled weakly up at him, as he glared down at her.

She left with Xigbar.


	4. Roxie's Birthday

Chapter 4

Roxie's Birthday

A few days past since the impatient Roxie went looking for Axel. It was finally her fifth birthday, and she spent the morning of it waiting with Demyx for Axel. When he came, she ran happily over to him.

"Look, daddy!" she cried, "Lookie what Demy got me!" She held up a small, red Sitar.

"I painted it myself," Demyx said, grinning proudly, "Besides, when I'm here, I can teach her how to play!"

"Sounds... like fun," Axel said, "And I've got something, too." He had been holding his hands behind his back. He pulled out one hand, and in it was a doll.

"Happy birthday, Roxie!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, thank-you, daddy!" she said, gazing at the pretty little doll in awe. It looked like her, with red yarn hair, green button eyes, and a dress identical to her's. It even had red socks with lace at the top, and black shoes, like her's. Next, Axel showed her what was in his other hand. It was a necklace with the Organization's symbol as the charm. It was silver, and shown beautifully in the light. Axel placed it around her neck.

"Oh!" Roxie cried, delighted, "Thank-you! It's so pretty!"

"You're welcome," he said, "but I'm going to have to go..."

"Do you have to?" she asked, "'cause it's my birthday!"

"I know," Axel replied, "But Xemnas will be VERY upset if I don't go."

"Oh..." Roxie sighed. Axel departed, and returned a few hours later.

Roxie was overjoyed to see him when he arrived.

"Hey, Roxie!" he said.

"Daddy! Hi daddy! Are you going to stay?" she asked.

"Ah... Xemnas..." he said, then added softly to himself, "I hate him." Unfortunately, Roxie overheard this.

"XEMNAS, BAD!" she yelled. Demyx cocked his head at this.

"No, no! Xemnas is the leader!" Axel said frantically, "I... um... no, never mind."

"No?" she said pathetically, "Ah, daddy!"

"Roxie," he replied, "I'm sorry..." He left her, with Demyx.


	5. The First Lesson

Chapter 5

The First Lesson

The next day, Axel woke Roxie up, very early in the morning. "Roxie," he said softly, gently shaking her. She growned and rolled over, then looked up at him.

"Good morning, daddy," she said, "What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing!" Axel replied, "But... I thought that, ya know, since you seem to have figured out how to control fire..."

"Yeah?!" she asked eagerly.

"I thought that I might teach you to control fire," he finished.

"Oh, daddy! Ya mean it?!" she asked.

"Yup! You are 5, now, and I'll help you, of course, if anything goes wrong," he replied, "So hurry up and get dressed!"

"O.K.!" she replied happily. She jumped out of bed, and Axel helped get together an outfit.

Once she was dressed, they came to an large, empty space in the room.

"O.K., Roxie," Axel began, "You're gonna have to concentrate for this, alright?" Roxie nodded. "Good. Now, watch me." He bent over as flames engulfed his arms, going from the tops of his shoulders, down to the tips of his fingers. His weapons, Chakrams, appeared in his hands.

"Now you try," he instructed, "and focus." She bent over and spread her arms, immitating him. After a few seconds, she cried out. A blast of fire exloded from her shoulders, ran down her arms, and shot out from her finger tips. A large ball of flame barely missed Axel and struck the wall, with a strong force. The Chakrams appeared in her hands. She then stood up staight.

"How was that, daddy?" she asked calmly. Axel closed his mouth, which was sagging open.

"How could one little girl create such a huge attack, without much effort?!" he wondered, then ran over to her.

"Are you O.K., Roxie?!" he asked her.

"I'm fine," she replied, "Did I do it wrong?"

"N-no, it's... not that..." he said, "It's just... uh... nevermind. That was good. Very good."

"Yay!" she cried happily.

"I... think you have that one down," he said, "and I don't think that you have to concentrate so hard from now on."

"O.K." she replied.

A little later, they were chasing each other around the room, trying to lighlty attack one another. One blow, then another was issued and taken. Roxie was getting better. She learned very quickly.

"Here I come!" she shrieked. She threw her Chakrams, one just missing Axel... and other taking a direct blow to his behind.

"YOW!" he cried.

"I'm sorry, daddy, I'm sorry!" she said.

"It's O.K." he replied, rubbing the sore spot, "But I think that I should dull those a little bit during the lessons." They both laughed, and continued with the lesson.


	6. Memories Lost

Chapter 6

Memories Lost

The years passed by, and Roxie grew taller and taller. She finally reached the age of 12. For the time being, she and Axel, as well as Larxene, Marluxia, Lexaeus, Zexion, and Vexen, were at Marluxia's Castle Oblivion. She heard a lot of talk about a 'Keyblade Master', by the name of Sora. Marluxia, Larxene, and her father were going to lure him to the castle, and use a girl that she had met, Namine, to do... something to him. That was all she knew of this plot.

She paced back and forth in one of the hallways, waiting for Axel, but her thoughts focused on his best friend, Roxas. She liked him, and had known that he had recently left the Organization, now called Organization XIII. She wondered what had happened to him. Her black hood swayed back and forth as she walked. Tired, she sat on one of the statues on either side of the walls. The statues had roses all over the tops of them.

"Marluxia sure is weird," she thought. Roxie grew impatient as time wore on.

"When's dad going to get here?" she grumbled in frustration, then sighed and added, "And I hope Roxas is O.K." She got up, but felt dizzy as her head began to throb. She numbly felt herself fall, and everything went black.

When she woke up, she noticed that everything looked different. The sky was different shades of orange, and a large clock tower was in front of her. In the distance, she could could see trains passed by.

"Where... am I?" she wondered aloud. Her necklace hung out of her long coat. She held it up, to where she could see it clearly.

"And where... did I get this?" Roxie asked herself softly.

-Sorry that this chapter is so short! It's my first fan fic, and I wanted to build the story up, to add suspense. The next chapter will probably be longer.-


	7. Twilight Town

Chapter 7

Twilight Town

Confused, Roxie stood up, and took another good look around. She noticed that there was at least one other person around. It was a man with blode hair, who just seemed to be wandering around anyway. She ran to him, desperate to find out what happened.

"Uh... Sir!" she called, and the man turned around. "Please! Can you tell me where I am?" she asked. He stared at her blankly.

"This is Twilight Town," he said, "but I don't think that I've seen you here before. Are you new here?"

"I guess... I can't really remember," she replied.

"Sounds like you have amnesia," he said, "Do you remember your name?"

"Yeah," she said, "Name's Roxie."

"Well, that's good," he said, "Do you live anywhere near here?"

"I don't know," Roxie said.

"Then maybe what you should do for now is find a place to stay," he suggested, "and maybe a job. There are plenty of jobs that you can get around here."

"O.K., thanks," she said.

She left, and wandered down the road beyond the clock tower. There was sign that read: Market Street: Station Heights. At least now she knew where she was. Seeing that she had a hood, she pulled it up until it sheilded her eyes. A few people passed by, several of which she asked for a place to stay. Having no luck, she saw a woman who seemed so... familiar to her. She reminded Roxie of someone... but couldn't think of who. So she approached this person.

"Excuse me," she politely called.

The woman looked up. "Hey," she replied.

"I had to ask," Roxie began, "but have I met you before? What's your name?"

"I don't think so," she said, "My name is Leah. You new here?"

"I was asked that earlier, and I really don't know," she replied, "and my name is Roxie."

"Roxie... I like that name," Leah said.

"Um... thanks, I guess," she said, unsure how to reply.

"O.K.," Leah said, "But I gotta go inside now, alright?" She opened the door to her house, went inside, and began to close it, but Roxie slammed her hand on it, to stop her.

"WAIT!" she yelled.

"Look, kid, I really need to go inside now," Leah said, some what annoyed, "It's getting late."

"But I need a place to stay!" Roxie explained, "So- please- can I stay here?!"

The red headed woman looked up at her ceiling in frustration, then back down at the girl, staring pleadingly up at her.

"Oh, alright," she muttered, "but under a few conditions..."

"Oh, thank-you so much!" Roxie cried happily.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever..." she replied, "just come on inside."

Once inside, Roxie looked around. Exotic figurines decorated the entire room, a cheery fire was in a stone firplace, with chairs facing it. Leah turned around to her.

"Don't touch anything," she ordered, and you can sit in that chair." Roxie nodded, and sat in one of the chairs in front of the fireplace.

"Do you like milk and cookies?" Leah asked.

"I don't remember," Roxie replied, "but O.K.!"

"Milk and cookies it is, then!" she said, then left to a room beyond this den, which appeared to be the kitchen.

Alone, Roxie looked around at her surroundings again. This time she noticed a large chest of drawers. When Leah came back, she couldn't help but ask:

"What's in there?"

"Oh, that?" Leah asked.

"Yeah."

"There's just a lot of old photos and stuff in there," she said.

"Can I see?" Roxie asked.

"I guess."

Inside, were pictures of all kinds of people, but only one really caught her attention. It was a picture of Leah, standing next to a man with red hair, holding a baby.

"Who's that?" she inquired. Leah picked up the picture and looked at it closely.

"I've seen this before," she said, "but I'm not sure as to who they are... But that guy looks kinda cute."

"I you say so..." Roxie replied in disgust, "That guy's probably, like, twenty something in the picture."

"Yeah, yeah. I wish I knew who he was..." Leah commented, "I just can't think of his name. But, it does seem like it started with an 'A'."

"For some reason, he looks familiar to me, too," Roxie said.

"Ah, well, we might figure it out later," Leah said, after a long pause, "For now, let's just have those cookies and milk!" Roxie agreed, and they did so.

That night, she stayed in a spare room, which appeared to have once been a nursery. She wondered why. Had this been Leah's nursery as a baby, or did she once have her own family? And where she, herself come from? Why was she in Twilight Town? Had she always been there? Or was there more to it than she thought...? With all these thoughts swarming through her head, she curled up tight into the covers of the bed, and fell fast asleep.


	8. Roxas

Chapter 8

Roxas

Morning came soon enough, and Leah had Roxie doing all kinds of work around the house, as a repayment. Breakfast was sausage and eggs, and Leah gave her a change of clothes while her black cloak was being cleaned. Roxie was allowed to go and find a job shortly after lunch. She stepped outside, and made her way farther down Station Heights, and to the Tram Common. First she came to the job board in Station Heights, which read:

-Help Wanted-

Mail Delivery: Help needed delivering letters quickly!

Cargo Climb: Having trouble getting cargo into garage.

Grandstander: Performer needed for street shows!

Once she finished reading it, she decided that she would try the mail delivery. It sounded like fun. She found the one who needed help, and soon found herself riding a skateboard down the streets of Twilight Town, shoving mail into all of the mail boxes she passed, as well as giving them to carrier pidgeons. She did well in her efforts, and received 50 munny in return. She did several of the other jobs She afterward came back to Leah and showed her what she had made that afternoon. The next few days after continued like this. Pleased, Leah finally allowed Roxie to explore the town. Immediately she took up the offer, and left.

Coming to an old alley, she looked around. There was a place that looked as if it was behind a black cage, and there was a room beyond. Curious, she came up to the gate, and peered in from there. Out stepped a blonde haired boy, a brunette girl, and another boy with black hair. The blonde boy noticed Roxie and froze.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she replied, "My name is Roxie."

"I'm Olette!" the girl said.

"I'm Pence!" the boy with black hair said. The other boy sighed, which sounded almost like a growl.

"You're not friends with Seifer, are you?" he inquired, gruffly.

"Who's that?" she asked.

"Good," he replied, then, pointing to himself, "I'm Hayner."

"Nice to meet you!" she said, cheerfully.

"Nice to meet you to!" Olette and Pence said, almost simultaneously.

"You new here?" Hayner asked, "I haven't seen your face here before."

"It seems that everyone has been asking me that..." Roxie said, "and it seems that I've also lost my memory, so... I don't know if I come from here or not."

"Amnesia, huh?" he said, "Well... then you should be warned: look out for Seifer. He has blonde hair, wares a black hat, a long white, sleeveless jacket... You'll know him when you see him."

"Thanks," she said, "I'll keep it in mind."

"Well, we should go," Hayner said, "See you later!"

"Bye!" Olette said.

"See ya, Roxie!" Pence said, and they all began to walk away.

"Bye! Nice meeting you!" she called, and she left, herself.

She removed her necklace, examining it curiously. However, she wasn't paying attention to where she was going. She ran into someone, knocking them both down.

"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed.

"It's alright," the boy said. He was wearing the same kind of coat that Roxie had found herself in originally. His hood fell back as he stood up. He had blonde hair, blue eyes, and appeared to be a couple years older than herself. He reached his hand out to her to help her up. She gladly grasped hand, and he pulled back onto her feet.

"Thanks," she said. The boy stared at her for a few seconds, then exclaimed,

"Roxie?!"

"You know me?" she asked him, confused.

"It's me, Roxas!" he cried. She stared back at him for a while.

"You do look vaguely familiar," she said.

"What?" he said, with a puzzled look, "You don't remembar?" Roxie shook her head.

"I bet Axel been looking everywhere for you! I'll go find him! You wait in this world! Whatever you do, don't leave Twilight Town, alright?"

Not knowing what else to say, she simply replied,

"Um... O.K."

"Good!" Roxas said, and a strange, black portal appeared in front of him. He walked through it, and disappeared. Confused, Roxie ran back to Leah's house. But when she ran into Roxas, she dropped something.

Her neclace.

Axel, who already was searching Twilight Town, walked across the Sandlot. Something that shone brightly in the moonlight caught his eye. He walked over and picked it up. It was a necklace with the Organization's symbol, as the charm. It was Roxie's necklace. He at least now knew what world she was in. He would continue his search at dawn.


	9. Axel

Chapter 9

Axel

The next morning, Roxie got dressed quickly, and had her breakfast to go. She hurried to the job board again, and tried out the 'grandstander' one. It turned out that she was better at it than she thought. Next, she tried the 'cargo climb', but didn't manage to do quite as well. For the first job she recieved 50 munny, and for the second, 10. So, she continued with the first job. When she was finished, she came back to Leah for lunch. Afterword, she went to find Hayner, Pence and Olette.

"I wonder if I'll see Roxas again today?" she wondered. When she came back to where she had met the three yesterday, she knocked on the side of the opening to there meeting place.

"Hello?" she called, "It's me, Roxie!"

"Roxie?" Hayner called back. He came to the doorway and greeted her.

"Hey!" he said, "Come in!"

Pence and Olette were sitting down inside, and noticed her.

"Hey, Roxie!" Pence said.

"Oh, hi!" Olette said.

"Hi!" she replied, "Mind me?"

"No not at all!" Olette exclaimed, "And... I thought you might come by again today, so... I brought ice cream! One for each of the four of us! It's called 'Sea-Salt icecream, Roxie."

"Cool! Thanks," she said.

Roxie sat down next to Olette, and they enjoyed the icecream. Pence leaned back, and with a thoughtful look, suddenly said,

"Ya know, Roxie, there was this guy looking for you."

"Really?" she replied, remembering her brief meeting with Roxas, "What did he look like?"

"Well," he began, "He was wearing this long, black coat, he had red hair, and he was really tall. Told us to let him know if we saw a girl named Roxie. When we said that we had met you, he seemed really happy."

Roxie thought for a few moments. She seemed to have very vague memories of a man like that... but she remembered being really small, and looking up into his green eyes... he was smiling at her...

"Sounds kinda familiar..." she said, "I think I'll check it out." She got up and turned to leave.

"Roxie!" Hayner called.

"Yeah?" she replied, looking over her shoulder.

"Be careful," he said.

She smiled, then said, "I will. Bye!" Her new friends said goodbye, and she left.

It occured to her that she forgot to ask which way he had gone, so she simply wandered around, hoping to find him, somehow. Roxie came to the Sandlot, and looked around. There was no one there. Still, she continued to look around, until she heard a strange noise behind her. She spun around, startled, and saw a man that looked just as Pence described. And just as she remembered... He noticed her, and stared blankly.

"...R-R-Roxie?" he stuttered, and ran up to her, then bent down to her eye level, "Are you alright?! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Who are you?" she asked.

"Oh no..." he groaned, "I was afraid of that..."

"Afraid of what?" she inquired, "Do you know something about my past?"

"Ugh... He just _had_ to make that Twilight Town data world, didn't he?" he grumbled, then said, "Uh... How do I start? I'm Axel... _your_ dad."

"My... dad?" she asked, now _really_ confused.

"Yeah," he replied, "You disappeared, and... I couldn't find you, so I came looking for you... and... I found you here."

"O.K..." she replied, "Your weird," and she ran as fast as she could back to Leah's house, with Axel close behind her.

"Wait, Roxie!" he called. She ran up to the door, opened it, ran inside, and slammed the door behind her. Leah was in a chair in front of the fireplace. She stood up, and exclaimed,

"Roxie, what's wrong?!"

"You remember the guy in that photo you showed me?" she asked, "Well-" She was cut off by someone knocking on the door.

"Wait a sec," she replied, then called, "I'm coming!" and started to open the door.

"No, wait!" Roxie exclaimed. But it was too late.


	10. Memories Returned

Chapter 10

Memories Returned

Leah opened the door. There was Axel, and she stood there, staring blankly at him. Roxie peered out from behind her.

"Um... Hello," Leah said, "Who are you?"

"My name is Axel," he replied.

"What do you want?" she said.

He pointed at Roxie and said, "I came for her." Leah put her arm around Roxie, and narrowed her eyes.

"Why?" she asked, now becoming defensive. Axel sighed, raised his head in frustration, then looked back at her.

"It's a long story..." he replied.

"Then get started," she ordered, "because I'm not letting you in or anywhere near her until you tell me what's going on."

"Yeah, alright," he sighed again, "This might sound crazy, to you-"

"I think I can take it," Leah replied.

"-but that's my daughter," he finished, having ignored her. She stared at him, and Roxie leaned up against her.

"Your... daughter?" she said, confused, but regaining her wits, told him, "Prove it." A look of deep thought came across his face.

"Well? Prove it already!" she commanded, "Or can you?"

"Wait a sec!" he exclaimed, then continuing his thoughts, then said, "There should be a photo in a chest of drawers in this room, and I'm in it."

"Roxie, could you-" Leah began.

"I'm on it," she replied, and ran over to where they had found that picture before. She opened the drawer and pulled the picture out, then brought it over to her. Leah took it, and examined it. She then looked back up at Axel. She looked back and forth between the two.

"O.K., so I have met you before," she said, "but, tell me, who is the baby?"

"Roxie," he answered.

"Me?" Roxie said.

"Yeah," he replied.

"Then... why am I with you two?" Leah asked.

Once again, Axel sighed, then said, "I told you it was a long story."

After a while, when they were inside, Axel explained to them, as best as he could, what had happened.

"-and this guy, Diz, was working on some kind of program," Axel said, "that is, according to my boss, Xemnas. Somehow, you ended up here, and that program- a replica of Twilight Town- had an effect on you, Roxie, messing up your memory."

"And... I was married... to you?!" Leah inquired.

"You mean we are married," Axel corrected her, "We were just separated by Xemnas. He originally wanted to get rid of Roxie, but, of course, I wouldn't let him."

"Why did he want to 'get rid' of me?" Roxie asked.

"Because he thought that I wouldn't come back, because of you," he replied, "Oh, and, I found this. I believe this belongs to you." He reached in his pocket and pulled out her necklace.

"My necklace!" she exclaimed, taking it.

"I found it while I was looking for you last night," he said.

"You gave it to me on my fifth birthday," she said, placing it back around her neck.

"You remember now?" he asked, "That's great! But, hey, we have to go back to The World That Never Was."

"So soon?" Roxie replied sadly.

"I have to get you back before Xemnas gets here," he said, then added, "He gave me a deadline, or else he said that he would come for you himself. And that's never good."

"Oh..." she sighed. Leah walked over to Axel and hugged him, then kissed him. She now also remembered him.

"Be careful," she said, "You too, Roxie."

"We will," he assured her, "and we'll try to come back soon." She smiled, and he made a portal appear. Roxie walked over to him, and she and Axel returned to The World That Never Was.


	11. Sora the Keyblade Master

Chapter 11

Sora, The Keyblade Master

Axel and Roxie stepped out of the portal, into Axel's room. Roxie stopped, and looked around, but her father continued on over to his bed and sat down. He tilted his head to one side, then said, "What's wrong?" Roxie glanced back at him, then continued looking around.

"Oh, I'm just still trying to remember everything," she replied.

"Hmmm... I see," he said, then started bounce up and down on his bed, while he patted a spot next to him, and added, "Sit down!" She walked over and sat down beside him. "Xemnas told me that once I brought you back, that I had to go tell him," he said, "So... You and I are going to the meeting room."

"O.K." she replied. She then followed him into a new portal, once they got up.

When they were in the meeting room, Roxie looked up. Other than themselves, there was only one person, sitting high above them in a white chair. A black hood hid his face from them.

"Superior!" Axel called, "I brought her back! See?!" The man, obviously Xemnas, Roxie thought, tilted his head down.

"You're late," he replied.

"Yeah, sorry about that..." Axel called. A black mist appeared around Xemnas, and he warped down to in front them. He then pulled his hood down. Roxie noticed that he had orange eyes, his skin was tanned, and his hair was grayish-white, though he didn't look old at all.

"Number eight, I gave you a time limit," he said. He then made two glowing swords appear in his hands. He approached Axel, raising his weapons.

"But I brought her back!" Axel exclaimed, backing away, placing an arm in front of his daughter in defence.

But, Roxie ran around him, and cried, "Leave him alone!" In anger of this outburst, Xemnas struck her below each of her eyes, leaving black scars, like Axel's.

"Hmph," the Superior said, "Just like your father." Axel ran to her and helped her up, as she had fallen over from the attack.

"Go," Xemnas said.

"But I-" Axel began, in protest.

"Return to Castle Oblivion," he commanded.

"Yes sir," the red head replied, and taking Roxie by the hand, backed away into a portal.

Once they were at the castle, Axel grabbed Roxie by the shoulders, and asked her, "Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine," she replied, "and I'm sorry. I got you into a lot of trouble."

He sighed, and said, "It's O.K. At least I have you back now!"

She shifted slightly, then asked, "So what do we do now?"

"We're going to ask Marluxia if Sora has arrived yet," he answered, "So come on!" They made their way a staircase, and then turned right, entering a white room. All though, Roxie noticed, every other room was white. Inside the room was a man with, strangely enough, pink hair, holding a rose, along with a woman with blonde hair, and a girl in white, who was the only one sitting down.

"Marluxia," Axel addressed the man with the rose, "Is Sora here yet?"

Continuing to smell his rose he replied, "Your just in time. He's already in the 'Traverse Town'." Marluxia added, "I've already met him."

"Oh, this should be fun!" the blonde woman exclaimed, "Namine is going to mess his memory all up! I can't wait!"

"Larxene, be careful with him," Axel said to her.

"You act like I'm going to break him, Axel," Larxene said, with a somehow evil laugh.

"Well, Namine will take care of the Keyblade Master's memorys, won't you?" Marluxia said to the girl, who was now drawing. Namine glanced sadly up at him, then continued drawing.

"Roxie, I'm going to leave with Demyx, by the way, in the room across from here," Axel informed the twelve year old red head. He walked out of the room, and Roxie followed him. They came to the room, as he said, across from the one they were just in. Inside was Demyx, who looked up at them.

"Roxie!" he cried happily, "You're O.K.! Do you remember me? You know, since you're memory messed up and everything?" She nodded, and he smiled back.

"Hey, I'm going to go now, alright?" Axel said, "I'm gonna go meet this Sora kid... See you later, Roxie, Demyx!

"Bye!" Roxie called back, as he disappeared through yet another portal.

The night passed on, and Axel would come back every once and a while to tell them what was going on. Once he even told them that he let Namine go free, so she could see Sora. After a while, when Demyx had even fallen asleep, Roxie had notced a vent, just large enough for her to crawl in through. Unable to contain her curiosity, she removed the cover, and climbed in. After crawling through for a few minutes, she heard voices. Peering out, she saw Namine talking to boy. This boy, she realized, must be Sora. She listened to their conversation for a while, but when Sora entered a white whatever-it-was, she returned to Demyx.

Shortly after, dawn came, and Axel returned.


	12. Don't Hate Me Forever

Chapter 12

Don't Hate Me Forever

A year had passed since everything that had happened at Castle Oblivion. By now, there were only a few members of Organization 13 left. Demyx was gone, and Roxie had been very upset about it. At least she still had Axel with her. Xaldin had gone to the Beast's Castle. Sora was on his way there.

Roxie liked hearing what Sora was doing, and where he was. Axel would tell her, though he was mainly focused on bringing Roxas back. She wanted to help Sora so much, but she did worry a lot about Roxas. And, as much as she wanted to help the Keyblade Master, she had gone to meet him face to face, but only once. This had very much upset Axel. He had forbidden her to go and find the brunette boy again, as he was concerned about her. But Roxie didn't notice, or care. She thought he just was holding her back.

She knew that Sora would battle Xaldin soon...

But how could she get passed Axel? Of course he wouldn't allow his only thirteen year old daughter to help Sora fight Xaldin. Especially since he had told her not to go last time...

She stood at a window at The World That Never Was and stared up at Kingdom Hearts, which was slowly coming together. Xemnas was at the top of the castle, watching it as well. He was up there most of the time.

She thought for a while, then finally made up her mind.

"Please, dad..." Roxie muttered, "Don't hate me forever."

Pulling up her hood, she walked away, and made her way down the hallways. She started at a walk, then to a jog, and finally breaking into a run. She held tight to her hood, and glance around each corner. Each time, there was no one.

Finally, she made it to the exit. Axel was no where to be seen.

"Maybe he won't catch me," she said.

"Maybe he will," a voice said behind her.

"Huh?" Roxie said in surprise, as could feel a drop of sweat pour down her face. She glanced back. There was Axel, with his arms were crossed.

"C'mon, Roxie, don't go!" he pleaded, "It's not safe!"

"I don't care!" she replied, "No one would miss me anyway, why should you care?" Axel closed his eyes and recalled when Roxas had said the same thing.

"Roxie, you know I-" he began, but when he opened his eyes again, she was gone. In confusion, he said, "Huh? Where-"

Then he saw her, running sraight toward the way out.


	13. Fire Against Fire

Chapter 13

Fire Against Fire

"Almost there..." Roxie mumbled to herself, as she approached the castle's exit. But, as she had feared, a black portal appeared in front of her. Out stepped Axel, now angered. She backed away, slightly frightened.

"Roxie, look," Axel said trying to keep his voice low, but stern, "I don't want you to go. I could never forgive myself if anything happened to you! Sora will be _fine."_

"How do _you_ know? You probably don't even care..." she protested, "Well, _I_ want to go help him!" She, now angered as well, stretched her arms out and her chakrams formed into her hands. "I won't let you stand in my way!" she cried then rushed forward, to shove him aside. But he quickly blocked her with his own chakrams.

"Roxie..." he said softly, and the battle began.

Axel was careful to use mainly defense rather than offense. He only wanted to keep her from leaving. But Roxie did her best to get past him. Finally, Axel threw his weapon at her to keep her away for a little bit longer. It came so close to hitting her, that to Roxie, it seemed to pass by in slow motion. The blades cut off a portion of her hair, and, noticing this, glared up at him. She then created a fire wall. It came closer and closer to her father. He, in turn, also created one. When the two fire walls collided, it exploded. Roxie was hurtled back, and Axel was slammed into a stone block. He was knocked out for a few moments, but quickly woke up. By the time he was on his feet again, he saw that Roxie was already up and ready to fight again. Weakened, he lowered his head and sighed.

"Fine..." He managed to say, "Make your own choice!" Confused, but relieved, Roxie ran past him and left to find Sora. Axel sighed again, as he watched her run off. But he had no intention of just letting her go on her own. He planned to follow, just in case...

When Roxie arrived at the Beast's castle, she was surprised to see that Sora had not arrived yet. She hurried to try and find Xaldin, but was careful not to find the Beast, instead. She found him, lurking in the ballroom. No one else was there.

"Xaldin!" she called. He turned around. "I-" she began, but something heavy hit her hard on the back of the head. It was the Beast. Xaldin had already left. Before he could figure out what to do with her, however, a familiar voice called, "Cure!", and this person picked her up and carried her away, into a dark portal.


	14. The Broken Tombstones

Chapter 14

The Broken Tombstones

Roxie opened her eyes- but wished she hadn't. Axel stood nearby, watching her, with arms crossed. She was laying on his bed, and had been unconsious for she did not know how long.

"Roxie," he began, "I told you not go! Sora is fine- I told you he would be. Who knows what would have happened to you if I didn't come..." She sat up, and lowered her head. What could she say? Nothing she could say would fix this mess... she knew that, and Axel was mad enough as is. But she tried to say something, anyhow.

"Dad... I-" Roxie began, then paused, seeing the sudden look of concern on her father's face as he turned his head toward the door. "What's wrong?" she asked, curious.

"We have to leave," he replied.

"What?" she said, now confused, "Why? You just brought me back here."

"I know... but Saix..." he started to explain, then added, more urgently, "We have to leave because it's not safe here. I'm going to take you to Twilight Town."

"What about you?" she asked, and began to feel afraid. His look of concern changed to one of sadness.

After after a long silence, he finally replied, "I'm going to help Sora get here..."

"You are?!" she said, happily, as Axel walked toward her. Then she noticed something.

"You're limping," she said, then exclaimed, "You're hurt! How did you get hurt?!"

"Saix..." he answered with a sigh, then smiled and explained, "See, I'm not exactly an organization member anymore... Because I, uh, kinda made them mad."

"So you're taking me to Twilight Town to keep me safe from Saix while you help Sora..." she said. Axel sat down beside her, and he nodded.

"Then you'll come back to me, and we'll just stay in Twilight Town after that, right?" she finished. Axel's smile faded away, and he stood up again.

"Maybe, maybe not," he replied.

"What do you mean?" she cried.

"Roxie... Just... Just come on," he said, and a portal opened. Roxie quickly followed him into it. When they stepped out of it, she could see the beautiful sunset and the clocktower.

"If you see Saix, Xigbar, or Luxord, hide somewhere safe, and stick with your mom," Axel instructed, "she will know where to hide from them."

"What about Xemnas?" she asked him.

"Don't worry too much about him," he replied, "He'll be waiting for Kingdom Hearts." He started to creat another portal, but she stopped him.

"Dad?" she said, "about earlier... I'm really sorry..."

"Don't worry about that now, Roxie, just keep yourself safe," he told, her then leaned down close to her, smiled, and added, "Got it memorized?"

She grinned, and replied, "I got it memorized!" Axel quickly gave her a tight squeeze, then disappeared into the portal. Not long had passed, when she _thought _that Sora would be into The World That Never Was. Roxie became too excited at the thought of Axel returning, that she decided that she would hurry to his room in the castle. She created a portal, and entered it. She stepped out of it, and stood in front of the Flurry of Dancing Flames room. She entered it, and looked around. Axel was nowhere to be seen. As she looked around the room, many memories came back, of when she was little, playing with 'Demy'... and her dad. She picked up the little doll that he had given her. Roxie smiled at the sight of it, then carfully placed it into her pocket. She glanced over at the red sitar that Demyx had given her- she played horribly at first, until he taught her how to play- and couldn't help but grin at the memories. She sighed that Axel wasn't there, and exited the room.

Once outside, she looked back at the door. Her smile faded, as the door turned from blue to red. Then suddenly, it exploded. Roxie screamed and ducked. She then spun around, and stared at the pieces scattered on the floor. She picked a piece with each hand, and stood up. Realization struck her, hard. This happened only moments after Demyx was gone.

"No..." she whispered, and fell to her knees, dropping the pieces of the door, then began to cry. After a few minutes, she stopped, and glared up toward the doorway leading to the Superior.

"Xemnas," she growled, entered another portal, and sat down on the bars above above the pathway of the room she had just entered- Twilight's View. Another tear began to fall down her face, but she wiped it away. Just the sight of all the broken tombstones- or at least that's how they looked to her- bothered her. She waited for a while. First, she saw Saix, a girl she had heard about named Kairi, who was with Namine, and a man in black. After they all left, she finally heard more footsteps coming. It was Sora, with his friends, Goofy and Donald. Roxie remembered when Marluxia wanted to have Sora as an ally. She wondered if Xemnas wanted that, too.

Sora ran along the pathway, and stopped, when he heard a voice call, "Hello, Sora."

"Hello?" he called back.

"Your the Keyblade Master," it said. A girl jumped down. He held his new keyblade- called 'Bond of Flame'- in defense. The girl looked at it sadly.

"My name is Roxie," she said, "Are you with Organization XIII?"

"No!" he replied loudly.

"Good," she said, sounding relieved.

"Roxie, are you?" he inquired.

"No," she replied, "But my dad is- was, actually- the one who gave you that keyblade." Roxie nodded toward the keyblade in his hands.

"Axel was your dad?" he said, confused.

"Yes, he was number eight in the Organization," she said, then began to sob, "But your Roxas! You can defeat Xemnas! Xemnas... I hate him for what he's done! Oh, daddy..."

"Roxas...? Why has everyone been calling me Roxas?!" he exclaimed, then added softly, "Are you O.K.?"

"I'm fine..." she replied, "but you'll figure it out... Now, go! Go defeat Xemnas! Don't let him have Kingdom Hearts!" Sora nodded, and continued on. He glanced back at her, then vanished, followed by Goofy and Donald into the next room.

Roxie knew that Sora would win the battle against Xemnas.


End file.
